Mail on Sunday Uses iCarhireinsurance Research

Yet again the nationals come to iCarhireinsurance first when they want the lowdown on the car hire industry. Working with the Mail on Sunday, we looked at how costs for car hire had changed in the last year and found some shocking stats.

Hiring a car abroad over the winter holidays will cost families a third more than a year ago, according to new research, says Mail on Sunday

Website iCarhireinsurance surveyed prices from leading providers in Barcelona, Nice and Milan and found the bill for a typical family vehicle rented for a week from December 27 is on average £299, up £81 over a year.

The average price of optional extras charged at the rental desk has also climbed sharply. Rental for a child seat is up from £53 to £62, satnavs from £61 to £70 and extra drivers from £38 to £41.

The study found that three out of four rental desks in the three destinations have put up prices.

The rates for insurance excesses have also leapt at half of the outlets surveyed, with the amounts drivers would need to fork out following an incident up by 24 per cent to an average of £1,078 if they did not have insurance to cover it.

Hire firms’ premiums for this excess cover, which is often pushed on weary holidaymakers at the desk, have also jumped dramatically, on average up from £90 to £104.